


Back "Home"

by AcidicPrince



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, BAMF Tony Stark, Fluff, Kinda parent!Tony, M/M, Minor Romantic Relationships, Other, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Protective Peter Quill, Protective Tony Stark, Slow Build, Tony Stark Has A Heart, but more like the kids adopted him instead, not team Cap friendly
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-28
Updated: 2017-07-31
Packaged: 2018-12-04 18:11:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11560617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AcidicPrince/pseuds/AcidicPrince
Summary: After being pardoned by the United States government the vigilante Avengers return to their old compound. Their old home. They're prepared to air out their old rooms, dust off their belongings and then rejoin the world like nothing happened, of course after they have a nice long chat with Tony about loyalty and his behavior. However, they find that the world has been running smoothly without them.Or Team Cap comes back, along with Bucky, and are introduced to Tony Stark's Defense Squad.





	1. Home at Last

**Author's Note:**

> I am proudly a member of the Tony Stark's Defense Squad™  
> He is my child.

They were all cramped into a quinjet, Steve looking hopeful next to Sam who was squished in with Clint into one seat. Wanda sat with Scott who seemed skittish yet also excited while Bucky was pressed against the opposite wall, one guard on each side of him and he was refusing to meet anyone's eyes. In the pilot's seat was a completely composed Pepper Potts, a professional, sleek black dress hugging her form that matched her impressively tall stilettos. He hair was tied into a high, clean ponytail that had been barely effected when she slipped on the jet's bulky headset. Besides her and the guards flanking Bucky everyone else was in rather casual clothing, ready to flop down on their beds in the compound the second they landed. All of their gear and suits having been transported home before them.

They were going home.

Even if a few of them had only been living at the Avenger's compound for a short while it was still a familiar and cozy place to them, and Steve was determined to not let the bad memories he had of Tony ruin the place for him. Sure, before the whole petty fight that the media deemed the 'Civil War' had happened Tony and him had been... good. They hadn't fought in months and they had _something_ , Steve had no idea what, going between them.

Now, six months after that whole fiasco he was prepared to mend old bridges and continue where they had left off. Tony had to be over all of it by now. Right?

Steve glanced at Bucky, noticing how rigid the line of his shoulders were and the hard set form of his jaw. The man's eyes were down cast and his hair fell in front of his face. They'd woken him up after hearing the news that the avengers were being pardoned and Steve urged him to come back to America. The only reason he even really had to win Bucky over is because for some strange reason T'Challa had consistently been reminding Bucky that he could stay in Wakanda, that he would always have a place to call home there. Though, Steve didn't get why his friend had even hesitated to follow him in the first place. The US was his home, Steve was his brother and there was nothing in Wakanda for him. It's not like he was a fugitive anymore, there was nothing to run from.

Everyone startled when the quinjet touched down, all of them too deep in thought to notice they had been even marginally close to the city. Once the jet skidded to a stop within the hanger bay everyone stood up quickly, anxious to plant their feet on the ground and be greeted by all of the friends they had left behind at the compound. Clint and Scott expected their families to ambush them with hugs and kisses and "I've missed you"'s and, "I'm glad you're okay"'s. However, the second the doors slid open for them they were met with an eerie silence. The Avengers stood frozen, staring out at the tree line, eyes flickering over the base that looked just as they had left it.

Bucky was actually the first one out, accompanied by his court mandated guards who followed closely behind him. Steve also didn't understand the guards. If Bucky was pardoned and no longer on the run, what was the need for them? His friend stood with a slight tilt to the left, uncomfortable with the unbalanced weight of his arm. The rest of the passengers slowly filtered out after a brief moment of just staring. The sky was a dark grey, a blanket of clouds stretching overhead and shielding them from the warm sunlight.

It wasn't what they had been expecting.

They knew a 'Welcome Home!' party with banners would be too much to hope for but still. They had hoped.

"Alright, kids, follow me." Pepper called over her shoulder as she walked towards the compound. "I'll get you all situated and then I'll be off to some board meetings so I'm not waiting up for you." The clacking of her heels on the cement shook the Avengers out of their stupor. They began walking behind her in almost single file, like a group of kindergarteners on a field trip.

"So, schedule. We get in there, you get your knew security badges, I show you to your rooms, you leave me be afterwards. Ground rules, none of you are allowed in the east wing, it is strictly off limits, also-"

But Steve just had to cut in at that, "Ms. Potts we've had full access in the past, why can't we go to the east wing now?"

"And security badges? That's a little low tech for Stark, isn't it? I mean c'mon, what about the weirdly invasive ID'ing Friday usually does?" Clint added.

Pepper sighed and turned to them just as they reached the front doors. "You being cut off from the east wing was a request from another Avenger who was not comfortable with any of you being around him. As for the security badges; there are new people who need to get familiar with your faces so they know if you're in a place you shouldn't be just by  looking at you. I know you are all some what used to Friday's regulated scanning but I decided to pull Friday out of the compound. I didn't believe it appropriate to keep Stark tech within the building now, especially something so advanced. You'll have those badges with you 24/7 by the way." She promptly turned back around and walked through the main automatic doors that lead into the compound, however only Bucky and his guards made it through before they quickly snapped shut again, right in Steve's face.

Pepper held up a finger, indicating it would just take one moment, before she punched a code into a panel installed in the wall next to the door. It slid open once more, this time long enough fore everyone to make it through. She gestured for them to follow once more before walking away briskly, not checking to see if they were following.

Wanda leaned over to Steve and under her breath said, "Cut off from the east wing because of a request from another Avenger," she scoffed, "Tony's not even supposed to be an Avenger, isn't he mentally unstable or something?"

Steve was just about to answer her when he ran straight into Pepper who had stopped in the middle of the wide, glass hall.

"Contrary to all your popular beliefs it was Vision who requested that you lot were to be kept out of that part of the building." She announced loud enough for everyone to hear while staring down Wanda who only showed bitter distain on her face, even though everyone knew Vision was a soft spot for her. Then Pepper was lowering her voice just so the witch could hear and crouching to her height to meet her eyes. "And aren't you one to talk about being _unstable?"_ She bit out, venom leaking from her tone.

Then she abruptly straightened up and continued walking, everyone else warily following after her.

They walked down a hall that looked new to Steve, floor to ceiling windows that showed off the meticulously cut lawn behind the compound. There was a flash of red that flew by the wall of glass and immediately all of the Avengers stiffened while Pepper and Bucky's guards continued walking, unaffected.

"Ms. Potts? Did you- what was that?" Scott asked, hesitantly.

However, before Pepper got the chance to even open her mouth something burst through the door that lead to the outside, the red blur, followed by a... young child with a gun? The highly trained soldiers and assassins tensed as they watched the spider-kid from the airport swing from the ceiling and come to a stop, upside down, in front of Pepper. The younger boy pushed past them to also get to the CEO, a manic grin stretched across his face.

"Hello Ms. Potts." Both of the kids said together.

Said women eyed them disapprovingly before holding out her hand to the smaller boy. He begrudgingly handed over his colorful gun, made from thick tubes and heavy duty springs from what Steve could see.

"Mr. Keener, what did I say about your food guns outside of the workshop?" Pepper asked sternly, though also with a touch of fondness. She pulled back a lever to reveal light green apple in the chamber.

The Avengers watched the exchange, feeling awkward for having been pushed aside and ignored so easily by the two kids. "You said, and I quote, 'Harley, I swear to the galaxies above, if you break one more two thousand dollar art piece with that potato gun I will dig up the old Jericho missile and blow it to hell.' This, however, is not a potato gun." He gave Pepper a big, mischievous grin. "Apples." He said smugly, pointing at the fruit.

"He does have a point, Ms. Potts." Said the Spider-boy, still dangling precariously from the ceiling. However everyone there knew that his webs were strong enough to hold him.

"Sometimes I really do wonder if you're actually related to your father." She mumbled.

The Keener kid sighed dramatically and said, "Well we do have a connection."

Steve felt uncomfortable listening to the ordinary conversation because since they were all completely disregarding the Avengers it seemed more intimate somehow. Bucky looked like he was trying his hardest not to listen into their talk and Sam was giving Wanda several pointed looks like he was trying to tell her something, while Scott was just looking around the compound in awe. To be perfectly honest it was sometimes weird to see that Scott still hero worshipped them and what they did even though he was basically one of them now.

Steve also wondered who these kid's dad was because Steve was pretty sure he knew most of the staff pretty well and would've heard about them having a spider-human mutation of a son. Maybe they were Ross'... Steve was never even close to being an acquaintance with that man so it made sense to not know about his super hero kid.

Pepper's voice cut through Steve's thought. "I doubt he would want me to introduce you all to each other but I'll do it anyways because you all need to have _some_ sort of chemistry on the battlefield." She began, but was cut off by Sam.

"Battlefield? That kid looks five?!" Sam said, pointing at the youngest.

"I'm thirteen, but sure, thirteen, five? Same difference." The 'kid' replied sassily.

"Well Harley won't actually be on the battlefield but he does operate some of the aerial scouting tech from time to time, just as an extra pair of eyes." Pepper responded coolly, tugging Harley close to her side as the spider gracefully let go of the web one limb at a time until he was upright and on his feet. He then yanked the web from the ceiling and wrapped it around his arm. "Good, you're learning not to leave behind a mess wherever you go." Pepper murmured, pleased.

"Are you sure that's appropriate?" Clint asked, brow raised. "I mean, for someone so young... I can't imagine my kids having to see such a gruesome battle on a regular basis. His father must not care much for his child's mental health." He said this with a slightly sarcastic lilt to his voice which only served to harden Pepper's glare.

Surprisingly, Harley answered. "I bet your kids have already seen enough. I mean, with them having a deadly assassin as a dad and all." He basically whispered, a certain edge taking to his voice. "But what would I know about raising a family, Hawkeye. I'm so young. I couldn't possibly understand what it's like to have to make the choice between staying retired or stepping out on your family for no apparent reason."

They were all shocked. Well, not Pepper or Peter, they had been expecting something even more brutal. Steve was about to argue or at least ask why the boy knew so much but thought better of it and allowed Clint to answer for himself. "Hey, kid, you don't know my situation. It was a tough decision but it had to be done. I knew what I was doing and I knew how leaving to help Steve would effect my family. I- I know I have a responsibility to my kids, as their father, but it was the right thing to do." He ended righteously.

"Eh, it happens, dads leave, no need to be a pussy about it, though." Harley replied nonchalantly. Peter chuckled, recognizing the line from the story Harley had told him about how he had met their father for the first time.

"Language, young man. You should never speak to your superiors like that!" Steve turned to Pepper helplessly but she just stared back at him, "Not trying to tell you how to handle kids under your super vision but are you really not going to say anything about that?" He asked incredulously, hands flailing.

"No, Rogers, I will not." She answered simply, turning away from him to continue down the hall. "Now, onwards with the schedule, I really do have board meetings for SI to attend in a bit." The two boys walked closely to her one either side as they disappeared into another corridor.

Clint glanced over at Steve, a completely baffled look on his face as he began walking to catch up with them. The others followed after them, just as confused by what had happened as their Captain was. Sam shook his head and mumbled under his breath, "damn teenagers and their damn angst" but kept up with his friends nonetheless.

 


	2. Settling In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone asked if I would be including Laura and the kids at the compound to further bash Clint and the team, so here it is, not that severe though, there'll be an angry ass Laura at some point.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Should I make Tony have his arc reactor again? Cause I really want to.

They were shown to their rooms which were significantly smaller then their last rooms and when asked why they had even been moved in the first place Pepper had answered that new people had moved in since they had moved out. Simple as that apparently. But they hadn't actually moved out, they'd left for a few months and were now back. So where was all their stuff?

"Well, some of it's stored in a warehouse south of here, like the bigger custom furniture but if it was small enough for someone to pick up without help than most likely it's gone." Peter answered, and at that Cap's team grew furious.

"What do you mean gone?!"

"How could you just get rid of our belongings like that?"

"Is Stark really that petty?"

Peter and Harley's face grew dark at the last comment, but the youngest restrained himself when he replied, "Considering you were wanted fugitives -not just in the US, but around the world and you all knew you were going against the law- you should've known that going against the Accords the way you did would make you someone not welcomed back to the compound with open arms. We didn't expect you to come back at all really."

"But isn't that what's happening right now?" Sam jumped in. "We were pardoned and now we're back at the compound." He said, brows furrowed.

"To be perfectly honest, Mr. Wilson, this is not a welcome back. We are not _happy_ you're here and I, personally would rather have you not stay here seeing as this is Stark Industries property. However, the team decided you all needed a cushion to start off with, seeing as none of you have actual jobs to rent an apartment, much less buy your own groceries." Pepper sounded like she was talking down to them, which she probably was since she was a rich CEO and the Avengers weren't actually getting individual pay checks for their services.

There was a small trilling bell that sounded from Clint's phone, so he pulled it out. A text message.

"Now, those meetings I've mentioned several times? I'm going to be five minutes late for the first one at this rate so I should really be going now. If you have more questions about the compound press the button next to your room's door, it will call an intern to come by and they can explain whatever you ask about the place and what's changed for your situation."

With that, Pepper began to walk away but Clint stopped her by saying, "Potts I don't want some fumbling intern, I want straight answers from _you_ about why the hell _anything_ has changed for us. I don't care if you're late to your meetings, from what I've heard from Stark they're usually not that important anyways. We only just got home and I want someone put together to tell me why I just got a text from my son saying 'Stay out of the East wing.  _We don't want to talk to you._ '"

Everything stopped. Pepper skidded to a halt and so did the teenagers who were following her. The other Avengers didn't move either, their voices caught in their throats.

Clint paused and took a deep breath, staring down at his phone- most likely the text- and grinded out, "Ms. Potts, if you would be kind enough to tell me why my family is in this compound and why they're in the East wing of all places I'd very much appreciate it." There was a dangerous edge to his tone, like he was ready to unhinge. The East wing was only for Avengers, outside of them if you wanted access you would have to deliberately request to stay there and even then barely anyone got verified. Steve only remembers seeing two people who weren't a part of the Avengers walk through that part of the compound and it had been Pepper and the secretary of state.

Said women turned to meet the archer's eyes and through a tight lipped smile said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Barton but it wouldn't be appropriate for me to tell you why your family chose to have their living space in that particular location. However, I can tell you that they were brought to the compound just before Ross sent out a team to search your farm house. At the moment the secretary does not know of their where abouts and the team would like to keep it that way."

Clint spluttered for a moment. "Ross sent people after my family?" He asked, though he did seem a hair calmer. "I... Who got them out? What team?"

"Tony and the other Avengers retrieved Laura and the kids just after learning of Ross' plans to have them investigated to see if they knew where you were hiding out."

"Tony?" Steve asked, completely bewildered by Pepper's answer. "Why would he..." He trailed off.

"Yes, Mr. Rogers, our friendly neighborhood Iron Man did the right thing." Pepper said, tone bitter.

Clint still looked confused but at least he was no longer angry. "And Barton? Those board meetings that are 'usually not important' are probably the most important thing in your life right now other than your family, seeing as we're discussing whether or not Stark Industries will continue funding the Avengers."

 

\---

 

After learning their funding might be cut, and then hearing that if that were to happen Tony Stark would pick up funding out of his own pocket, everyone was a bit dumbstruck. Their first thought had been that the only reason Tony would fund them privately would be out of the selfish need to always be in the spot light as Iron Man, but then they realized he could self fund and completely drop the Avenger's title all together. He didn't need them really, the billionaire had been fine in the past when going solo.

Now everyone was slowly filtering out of their new bland bedrooms and into the common area that connected them all. Bucky's guards had left along with Pepper after she had explained that he was only required to have them if he wanted to leave the compound.

None of them had changed, or showered, or eaten since they had landed about five hours ago even though that had been everyone's plan for when they first got 'home'.

None of their closets were stocked with clothing like they usually were so it's not like they could change anyways, and no one really wanted to relax after absorbing all of the information they just had. So, they sat together in a comfortable silence, waiting for something to happen.

Eventually something did happen.

A kid who looked to be in his mid-teens and Harley came in with a small metal box. The Avengers sat up straighter and watched the kids walk closer until they were right in front of each other.

"An intern was supposed to come by and give you all this but we wanted to do it instead, even though dad would be pissed that we're even talking to you." Harley said, preoccupied with unlatching the little box and flipping it open.

"Language." Steve muttered involuntarily before looking strangely at the older boy. "And you are...?" He asked, gesturing at him.

"Peter. Kinda Harley's brother, not officially though."  When Steve still looked helplessly confused Peter held out his left hand, bent in his middle and ring finger and made a _'psst psst'_ sound.

"You're the Spider-boy?" Asked Sam incredulously. Bucky was also staring at Peter but he had put one and two together just from noticing Peter's height, body type and voice.

"Spider- _Man!_ God! I-I Ugh!" Peter exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air dramatically before continuing. "We have your stupid security badges and your stupid credit cards for your stupid faces." He grumbled childishly.

Harley rummaged around in the box some more before pulling out a handful of lamented badges. He handed them each their own and reminded them that they were required to wear them at all times for at least the first month of being back so people could familiarize themselves.

"How would someone not recognize us? I mean, c'mon we're basically famous." Scott said, examining the picture of himself on the card.

"J-just wear the badges and get over it." Peter sighed as he passed around another set of cards.

"Each of those have one hundred thousand dollars on there. You don't get it renewed for a year, and since you don't have bills or groceries to pay for you should be fine." Harley told them.

Steve narrowed his eyes. "We used to have unlimited funds on our cards...?" He asked almost suspiciously.

"Yeah well the average American _earns_ about fifty thousand a year and they have debts, bills and taxes to pay. So, considering you won't be cleared for combat yet you guys are basically just being handed a lot of money without having to do anything for it. Be grateful for once, okay?" Harley replied, staring straight back at Steve menacingly, but since he looked about ten or eleven it wasn't all that intimidating to the Captain.

"Uh huh..." Was all the boy got in response as Steve tucked the credit card into his pocket and clipped on his security badge. It read, 'Steven Grant Rogers. Former military Captain. Enhanced Soldier.  Inactive combat participant. Clearance Level: 4'

He used to be clearance level nine.

The metal box clicked shut as the boys turned to walk out of the room. Though, Harley glanced back over is shoulder to say, "And be warned, there's one furry, salty mother fucker waiting for you guys to step out of line for even a second. And he _will_ blow you sky high at any chance he gets." And with that they were gone.

The team was quiet for a moment before Clint asked hesitantly, "... furry?" And looked to Steve, but all he got was a confused shrug in return.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayyyy my furry friend Rocket the raccoon.  
> I'll try and put as much Tony as possible in the next chap.  
> Should I add Kamala Khan since she's friends with Tony in the comics?


	3. Meeting Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ExVengers find out Tony kinda sorta has kids and Clint gets to see Laura. Well not 'get's to'. More like him and Cap broke into the East Wing in the middle of the night and almost caused his wife to have a panic attack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk how long I'm going to make this fic actually... cause originally it was just going to be a one shot.  
> Should I make it a completely fleshed out story?

There was a knock on Steve's door at 3:04am.

It was a Saturday and the pardoned Avengers had been staying at the compound for five days now. None of them had really ventured out of their rooms or common area all that much so most of them were getting antsy, especially Scott (HA PUNS). Yesterday they had all sat down together and had ordered an entirely new wardrobe for each of them online since they were already tired of wearing the generic clothes SI had provided them with until they got everything they needed.

It was nice to just be with each other, in a way, but they were all starting to feel a bit cramped from staying in the same few rooms they rotated through. Bedrooms at night, kitchen at 7am, dining table at 8am, lounge around until noon, fight over the TV remote, lunch, lounge, dinner, bedrooms.

That is, until 3:04am came around.

Steve opened the door quietly, not wanting to wake up his fellow teammates across the hall if he didn't have to, and was greeted with the sight of Clint. The archer was fully decked out in his stealth suit with a hand gun strapped to the outside of his right thigh, but other than that he carried no other visible weapons, not even his bow. He had a dark look on his face and suddenly Steve realized that the man had a similar look on all day yesterday. The expression didn't give away an emotion but the man did look serious.

Clint brushed past him as he walked into the bedroom.

"We're leaving for the east wing in five minutes. Just you and me." He said as a finality, eyes flicking around the room.

Steve made a confused sound before saying, "Clint, no, we can't. Remember, we're not only too low of a security clearance but Vision specifically asked us not to go there. I don't... I don't want to make him uncomfortable."

Clint scoffed, his smile razor sharp. "He's a freakin' robot, Cap, you aren't going to hurt his feelings or something. I doubt it was even him who requested that. Pepper was probably just covering up for Stark." He bit out.

Steve took a deep breath, than asked, "Why do you want to go?"

"My family, you know that, Rogers. What if they were never really in trouble? What if-if Stark had them kidnapped or something." The man whisper-yelled. "What if they don't actually want to be there and the only reason no one wants us in the East wing is because we'll find out something they don't want us to know?"

"I... But your son... Didn't Cooper...?"

"It could've been fake! Really, Cap?!" The man's temper steadily rising.

Steve sighed, not quite knowing how to handle this. "But... Clint, if it was staged... If they didn't want us snooping around to see your family then why would they announce that they were even here by sending a text from Cooper?"

"I don't- I don't know! Okay?!" Clint exclaimed, brows drawn together like he was trying to figure something out but just didn't understand. Steve honestly felt bad for the guy. "I just don't know... But- if we- if I could talk to them for just a second I-I could find out why. Right? I just want to find out why, Steve."

The Captain stared at the archer, inspecting him, pitying him. And finally, "Yeah okay. Give me five minutes, meet me outside your bedroom's window, yeah?"

"Yeah."

 

\---

 

They were able to sneak into the East wing fairly easy, especially when they considered how intense Stark's usual security was. Since Clint used to enjoy lounging about in the vents he knew the path into their old common area fairly well. Steve was only able to fit because when the Avenger had first moved into the compound Tony had the ventilation shafts enlarged and reinforced since he knew that Hawkeye liked to travel through them.

Once they were directly above the east wing's common area they dropped stealthily from the ceiling, landing with barely even a thud. Just around the corner they could hear a television on and from what they heard it sounded like a children's cartoon.

Clint was immediately over joyed with the thought that he didn't have to search far for his wife and kids and made his way into the other room where the TV was playing. What he was met with wasn't what he had been expecting.

On the long, plush couch slept a certain genius, billionaire, philanthropist. Tony Stark.

Steve and Clint hadn't even known that Tony lived here, much less even visited that often, but that wasn't the weirdest thing in the room.

From the vantage point they had they could see Tony lying across the couch with and arm dangling off the side and... a light emitting from his chest that Steve was suddenly very aware of. While Peter Parker sat off to the side in a recliner adamantly watching the TV show, Harley sat on the couch with Tony's legs thrown over his lap, and perched on top of Stark's chest was Lila Barton.

Who was undoubtedly covering the man's face in _pink, sparkly makeup._   

Both Steve and Clint stood motionlessly in the doorway, not having been noticed by the three children yet. Their jaws were practically on the floor. Clint watched as his daughter picked out a little, Barbie themed eyeshadow palette from the pile of makeup next to Tony's face. Tony Stark's face. Which was covered in makeup that twinkled from the television's light being shown onto it.

Clint thought he was about to pass out, right there, hard marble floor be damned.

That is until the lights in the room suddenly flickered on and a sleepy Laura Barton stumbled out of the hallway that led to the bedrooms.

"Why. Why on God's beautiful, green Earth are you kids still up?" All of the children turned to the women, sheepish looks on their faces. "It's almost four o'clock in the morning, Lila! And, w-what are you doing to Mr. Stark?!" She spluttered.

Lila put down the tiny eyeshadow palette and stuck a finger into Tony's cheek, titling the man's face so that Laura could see.

"Anthony bought me new makeup and I was really excited to try it and he told me he'd let me put a lil' bit on him but then he fell asleep." She said with a slightly regretful tone, though she looked proud of her makeup skills.

It looked like Laura was about to have a heart attack but Harley butt in before she could say anything. "He won't mind, really. I mean, it's better than me and Petey drawing-" he cut himself off and glanced at young, innocent Lila, "phallic... features on his forehead."

Laura sighed and said, "Yes, well even when you do that to him he doesn't get mad because he's a good dad to you two and knows you're just messing around. But Lila, you know you should've waited until he woke up and asked permission again. Tony's been working himself to the bone."  

Then everything clicked in Steve's head.

"Dad?" He asked incredulously.

Suddenly everyone's eyes were on him and Clint, everything frozen except for the quiet cartoons playing in the background. There was a soft groan from Tony on the couch as Lila slid off his chest and onto the floor. Her eyes were giant and watery as she stared disbelieving at her father, backing up until she was behind her mom who hugged her to her back.

Harley flicked Tony in the face a few times, though his eyes were still locked on the menacing looking men in their home's doorway.

Tony startled awake, squinting at the amount of light in the room while oblivious to the tension between everyone, flecks of glitter falling out of his goatee. Then he flinched and his body went completely stiff as he saw the anger and fear and sadness in Laura's eyes. No one else moved in the slightest as the engineer slowly stood from the couch and turned to face the two intruders. He pulled his own children behind him, tugging Peter out of his seat until he was satisfied that he was between the danger and his family.

"Out." Was all he said. Simple and to the point with a low, commanding voice that just barely concealed his anger.

Neither of the men in front of him made to move.

"Rogers. Barton. If you are still in this room within the next five seconds." And he let the threat hang in the air. Even with a sparkling bear and- honestly, really well done- eyeshadow on he still looked incredibly intimidating. However, even with his command to leave Clint and Steve stayed, However, right as the five second mark hit there was a clang of metal and the flash of a brilliant bright, fluorescent light.

And suddenly Tony was encased in the Iron Man armor.

Peter pushed a small, concealed button on both of his bracelets and let his web shooters wrap seamlessly around his wrists. While Harley bent down minutely, not moving his gaze off of  the other men, and slipped a hidden hand gun free from where it was strapped in under the coffee table.

A menacing sight was an understatement.

Steve cringed inwardly at how little Tony trusted him and went to grab Clint's arm to pull him backwards and out of the east wing, but his friend moved quickly out of his grasp and took a step towards the others.

"Laura-" He started, a pained echo to his voice, though he wasn't able to continue seeing as Harley shot at the floor between the man's feet.

"Tony said five seconds." Stated the youngest boy, deathly calm.

"I-..." He swallowed roughly and glanced between his wife and daughter. "Okay. Okay we're going." Clint said cautiously and stepped back towards Steve, knowing it would be futile to push his luck any further.

Steve silently grabbed his arm and lead them backwards, watching Tony closely to make sure he wouldn't make a dirty move even after their surrender. They made their way back to their own common area and suddenly the weight of the situation crashed down on Clint like a hurricane.

"They really just don't want me." He said sullenly.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Should I write from Tony's POV? Or maybe Harley's...?


	4. Lessons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From Tony's POV   
> I really want Steve to feel like shit for what he did to my bby in Civil War so I'ma make Tony still have his arc reactor. I'll explain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's some Wanda/Clint bashing in this because mm. Damn, murdering Wanda would restore innocence in humanity honestly.  
> Also I didn't grammar check this chapter, point it out if I fucked up

Once the two intruders left Tony let out a long, tired sigh before letting the Iron Man armor unfold from around him and pilot itself back to it's docking point in the workshop downstairs. He straightened himself up, still only partially awake, and turned to Laura and Lila with a determined look.

"I am so sorry."

Laura had bright tears glistening in her eyes that threatened to fall, and didn't that just yank on Tony's heart strings? Lila had come out from behind her mother once Clint was completely out of view and there were tear tracks staining her cheeks, and didn't that just _rip apart_ Tony's heart strings?

Both girls rushed forwards and scooped up the three boys, pulling them all into one, giant group hug. Laura was now openly crying but when Tony pulled back slightly he noticed she was also laughing...? And there was glitter all over everyone...?

"Oh god! You looked so ridiculous!" Cried out Laura, her smile blinding as Lila reached up to fluff Tony's goatee, more pink and blue sparkles raining out of it. Suddenly Tony was chuckling too, slightly more awake now that he was being jostled.

"Y-you scared off my husband looking like that." She shook with laughter, but Tony knew that if there was nothing to laugh about he would be receiving a very different reaction from her.

Peter and Harley joined in the laughter, and all Tony could focus on was how the light from his arc reactor hit their smiles and think was that he was so,  _so_ glad that he had all of them in his life.

 

\---

 

The moment Tony noticed the sunlight filtering through the trees he stood abruptly and made his way out of his workshop where Harley had fallen asleep on the couch. He walked briskly out of the East wing and into the West, where the other Avengers had been staying. A purpose to his walk and a confident upwards tilt of his head now that he wasn't half asleep and it wasn't four in the damn morning.

He waved at Bucky's guards, Violet and Leonardo, as he passed them. They weren't only guards, they also happened to be trainees. Violet had similar powers to Wanda, though since she was born with them hers were much stronger and much more perfected, and while their 'magic' was a like their personalities couldn't be any further apart. Wanda, a loud, bratty, over emotional person who felt she had a right to whatever was in her eyesight, and Violet, who was stoic and calm about ninety percent of the time but had a heart of gold when it came to family.

Tony had been sending the new witch, 'The Essence', out on small scale missions as a replacement for Wanda since, even though Tony didn't like Wanda, he had to admit her powers were useful, especially when kept under control.

And Leonardo was a bit like Natasha in some aspects, though he preferred to be set behind a computer rather than out on the field.

Tony really had to get around to promoting them so that they wouldn't be stuck as bodyguards. Maybe send them out to help Bruce, wherever he was.

As he walked by them they both patted him on his shoulders, offering him a quick, "Nice to see you out of the lab, Stark!" To which Tony smiled at their retreating figures and said, "Hey, it's my job, I have to be down there 24/7!"

However, that was as far as his pleasantries went, because the next second he was slamming open the doors that lead into the West wing's common area.

Everyone was there; Steve, Sam, Clint, Scott, Wanda and Bucky who sat far away from the others.

"What the _hell_ were you idiots thinking!" Tony asked, voice steady but eyes blazing.

The team spluttered for a moment, not knowing how to react to Tony Stark barging into their home, even though that's exactly what they had done to him earlier.

"I had- We have _two fucking rules_ in this compound and you've literally broken both of them within the first week of staying here! Not even a week! I have half a mind to throw you out in to the streets of New York right now!" He continued when no one answered.

They had all stood up by now, but only Steve had the decency to look guilty. Clint was the one to speak up though, "You know I needed to see my family, Stark. I- I had to see if they were okay."

"Okay? _Okay!?"_ Tony spit out furiously. "Of course they aren't fucking _okay!_ You left Laura with two kids and a baby in the middle of no where with Ross on her ass!" He was yelling now, he could tell, but he didn't care enough to compose himself.

Steve held up a hand for a second and somehow Tony just knew he was going to be a righteous asshole. "Come on, Stark. You know Clint didn't have a choice. I asked him to help out and he came. If anything, him leaving is on me." Yup, Tony's prediction was right.

The engineer scoffed. "I'm sorry, but if I do recall, Mr. Barton here was retired. Meaning, even if you did call for him he wouldn't have any obligation or need to come aid you in a situation he wasn't even a part of. What did you even tell him to get him to leave behind his family?"

"That you were holding me hostage." Answered Wanda quietly, and at that Tony almost lost his damn mind.

Steve gave him a pointed look that he wanted to roll his eyes at, but he knew that if he did they'd roll right out of his goddamn head.

"Hostage, Steven?" He asked dangerously. "A fucking hostage, Rogers?!" He screamed but all Steve did was nod in response, like what he had told Clint was perfectly reasonable. So, Tony stalked up to him until there was less than a foot between and the arc reactor's like was illuminating their faces grimly.

"Do you want to know why little red riding hood was on house arrest? Because she had just killed a dozen people, give or take a handful of injuries and hospitalizations, in an unsanctioned mission while acting as an Avenger which she never officially, _legally_ joined. And since she was acting under the Avenger's name, which is a US based team, everything just gets worse, because she doesn't even have a fucking visa to _be_ in the United States! Much less serve for us!" He took a moment to just let it all sink in before continuing. "So, the reason why she was stuck in the compound, which is enormous and can fill all her needs might I add, is because there were people who wanted her head on a fucking silver platter. So, if she left the compound and a fight started, whether her fault or not, it would blow up and the Avengers would _end,_ right then and there." He finished with a sideways glance at Wanda who was looking down at the ground.

His gaze flicked back up at Steve to see the man grasping at his words and trying to form his own response. Though, he just looked like a fish gaping for water.

"You're a simple man, Captain America, you may have fought in a war but you just don't understand politics." Tony ended bitterly before sparing a glance at a now guilty looking Clint. "Case in point, Barton. You _really_ didn't have to come."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually really love Clint but he's one of the easiest to pick on, especially him from the MCU


	5. Suggestions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really just wanted Bucky and Tony to talk,  
> also I didn't grammar check this one either

"Excuse me, Mr. Barnes?"

At the sound of his name Bucky snapped out of his stupor and looked up to see a Stark Industries intern only a few feet away from him. She was young and well kept, her golden hair tied into a high, clean bun at the back of her head.  An uneasy smile stretched across her lips as she fought to make eye contact with him.

"Mm?" Was all he replied with.

"Um, Mr. Stark would like to speak with you in private, sir."

That was strange.

The only reason Stark would specifically ask to speak with him alone would be to A; murder him, B; simply hit him, C; tell him to keep Steve in line after the Clint and Laura incident which had been three days ago. Other than those options Bucky couldn't come up with any different plans Tony might have for him.

"Did he tell you why?" He asked, hearing his voice for the first time in days and realizing it was low and scratchy.

"Uh-  oh well, he said something about BARF but- um-"

"Barf?" Bucky asked, completely confused as to what she meant.

The intern looked unsure for a moment, like she didn't know how to continue before saying, "Uh- yeah, Binarily Augmented Retro Framing." Bucky continued to stare at her cluelessly. "It's one of his million dollar projects that's supposed to help people with PTSD reassess their traumatizing experiences and hopefully work through them."

"Is there a lot of... Uh- machinery involved?" He asked, feeling like an idiot. However, when Hydra had been using him he was always strapped into a chair surrounded by enormous pieces of precarious technology, so being in a similar arrangement could... trigger something. Though, Bucky honestly still had no idea what was going on and if Stark was even going to mention BARF at all to him.

"Oh well, really it's just a pair of tinted glasses that connects to your hippocampus. Mr. Stark actually did a presentation on it at MIT. I'm sure there's a video of it somewhere on the internet if you wanted to learn more. But, right now Sir is waiting in the conference room in hall 800, room 845. Though if you don't wish to speak with him I'm sure he would understand and I would just stop by to inform him of your decision."

Bucky considered his options for a moment and then told her, "Yeah- uh no, no, I'll go... Room 845?" She nodded as he stood up and began heading out to the conference room. "Uh, thanks, by the way." He said as an after thought.

"No problem, Mr. Barnes."

 

\---

 

The door to the conference room was cracked open when Bucky got there. Not knowing what to do he awkwardly knocked on it softly and waited for a "Yeah, uh, come in!" from the inside. He pushed open the door cautiously and was met with the sight of a ruffled Tony Stark at the head of the conference table that was stacked almost up to his chest with paper work and binders.

"Oh, Barnes, have a seat, I just- yeah one sec." Tony told him, barely sparing the assassin a glance.

Bucky slowly moved to pull out a chair at the opposite of the table, not knowing how to react to being alone in a room with only Stark. The man who had attacked him when he had learned that Bucky murdered his parents in cold blood. The man who humiliated Steve in front of his own team. The man who had offered the pardoned Avengers a place to call home, even if he didn't have to.

Bucky understood Tony's reaction in Siberia. He understood Tony's need to chastise Rogers and Clint after what they did. What he didn't understand was why he offered them the compound. It made no sense. However, maybe now he'd learn why.

Stark muttered something under his breath, eyes flickering back and forth over two paper piles, his hand coming up to tap a rhythm against his chest where the softly glowing blue light resided. What surprised Bucky is that when the engineer's finger nails hit that same spot there was a soft metallic pang. Metal? Bucky had never made a conscious effort to actually look up Tony before, but he had heard whispers from the team talking about the Iron Man suit or why Tony was the way he is. He remembers hearing the words _Arc Reactor_ and _power_ but didn't know how they tied in. Yet, somehow they continued to stick in Bucky's head as he kept analyzing Stark.

While Barnes was wearing a grey Henley and dark pants Tony was wearing a well worn in band shirt that read _AC/DC_ and a pair of ripped up jeans. Bucky had never seen the man outside of some kind of suit, whether armor or Armani, so it was strange to see him dressed so casually. He noticed several smears of black littered around the other man's body, most likely engine grease or oil but chose not to point them out since Stark probably already knew they were there. His hands were covered in thin scars that lead up to his wrist and his goatee was slightly messier than the last time Bucky had seen him.

"Okay." Stark announced, moving around the giant stack of work to sit a few feet away from Bucky. "First things first. I'm sorry."

And didn't that just throw off all of Barnes' expectations.

"I'm uh- sorry for what happened in Siberia. It wasn't... I shouldn't have broken down on you. I shouldn't try to give you excuses but I'll try anyways." He paused to gather his thoughts. "I knew at the time that it wasn't actually you, that it was Hydra and you were only the weapon but you were right in front of me so it just broke something. A-and Steve? When I asked him if he had known and he still tried to lie to my face? That set me off, and I took out that anger on you when I really, _really_ shouldn't have so I'm s-"

"It's okay."

Tony took a moment to gape at him before asking, "What?"

"I... Yeah, it's uh- okay." Bucky replied, really meaning what he said.

Stark stuttered for a few seconds, not knowing how to tell him _No! No, it's really not!_ But he settled on, "What." Again.

"It's okay." Bucky told him once more, not in a condescending tone, not tiredly, just as a finality. "And I'm sorry too." Tony looked like he was about to say something so Barnes held up a hand so he would stop. "Protocol is always 'if someone emotionally compromised hits you never _ever_ hit them back', because it only fuels them."

"But you didn't really hit me back!" Stark blurted out. "You were using self defense and mainly just trying to run away, and- and I just kept coming so you had to fight!"

"It was honestly Steve's fault."

And that's what shocked Tony into silence.

Steve had gone against the world to get to Bucky. Had fought off his own team for him! Yet, the man he fought tooth and nail to save was blaming him.

"What do you- how- he was doing it all for you...?" Tony asked, not knowing how to respond.

"I didn't ask him to." He replied simply. "I didn't ask him to blow off, what- 117 countries? I didn't ask him to collapse that tunnel, I didn't ask for him to have an all out war with his fellow teammates, or to invite Ant-Man, or to keep the information about the other Winter Soldiers a secret! I was running from him for months and he wouldn't give up! He's too stubborn for his own good, and I know he feels guilty so I'm also apologizing for him, too. I'm incredibly sorry." He finished.

"I..." Tony tried to start. "I'm over it, I guess... It's um- thanks, but it's fine."

"I saw that you had to pay, out of your own personal pocket, for everything damaged during the 'Civil War'." Bucky stated. "[Seventy one _million_ dollars](https://instagram.com/p/BXDYs54HYoE/), Stark. I know you're a rich man, but really? You'd just let them pour that all onto you?"

Tony looked at him weirdly.  "You... You can't- I didn't let them pour it onto me!" He yelled, leaning back his chair, pressing the heel of his palms into his eyes. He took a deep breath before continuing. "I had no other choice but to pay for all of the expenses out of pocket because SI's numbers were dipping because of my bad press so they couldn't afford to fund it all. And- and it's not like I could've made Steve and his jolly men pay for it all! They were hiding out in Wakanda the whole time! I mean yeah, I could've stormed  over there and started a whole thing with T'Challa for letting them stay there but I couldn't give them another reason to not trust me!"

Looking at Tony, _really_ looking at him, Bucky could seen the harsh lines around his eyes and the tenseness in all of his muscles.

"Wait... You-... You knew we were hiding out in Wakanda? All along?" He asked incredulously.

"Of course I knew!" Stark shouted, almost at the top of his lungs, looking desperately overwhelmed. "But I didn't- I couldn't- I- I really don't have to explain myself to you on that topic." He took a second to take a breath and collect himself. "The reason I actually wanted to speak with you is because part of your court sentence is to attend some form of therapy. And I could just send you to a regular ole shrink or I could create a BARF program specifically for you." He gave Bucky a moment to let what he had said sink in.

"Yeah... You're uh, the intern told me about BARF." He said softly, worried that he might set Tony off again.

"You don't have to start now, you don't have to start with it at all, but it is an option. And something you should know is that I would have to be present throughout each session, seeing as I'm the only one it's been tested on and who knows how to work it properly." When Bucky didn't respond immediately he added, "Or I could train someone to do it, it would just take some time..."

But Barnes stopped listening a few moments ago and had to ask, " _Only_ tested on you?" Tony met his eyes for a brief moment before they flicked back around the room. "What if it had, I don't know, zapped your brain and killed you?" He knew he shouldn't be worried for the man, especially since they had been enemies at one point, but he couldn't stop himself from caring for some reason.

"It doesn't matter." Tony glazed past easily, "What matters is that it works, and it can be modified to fit a certain person's needs accordingly." He stood up and picked out a thick stack of paper. "This is all the information on how I made it, how I'd use it, how it'd help, and if they're might be side effects, though I haven't come across any yet except for slight drowsiness." He put the packet on the table and slid it over to Bucky.

"Damn." He breathed out as he flipped through the giant contract.

"If you want to do it sign on the very last page and hand it off to an intern, they'll know where to find me."

Bucky glanced up at him curiously. "Is there... A- uh, deadline or something?"

"Nope." Tony answered simply. "Now, as you can see it's six o'clock and I have a spider-kid and a fun-sized demolitionist to feed." He said as he walked out the conference room door, and down the corridor to the right, towards the East wing.  

Bucky sat quietly in the room alone for a few more moments, wondering what just happened, before hoisting himself out of the chair and leaving with the packet tucked under his arm.

 

\--

 

That night Bucky typed 'Tony Stark BARF presentation MIT' into the Google search bar on his SI laptop which had been provided with the room in the compound. He clicked on the first link that lead him to a website called YouTube and watched the video. It was about five minutes long and showed what he could only assume to be a younger, twenty one year old Tony next to Marie Stark who was playing on a beautiful piano.

He watched as Howard entered the room and Tony made no move to greet him properly. His mother chastised him and finally he told Howard that he loved him. It was a sweet scene really, but not what Bucky had been looking for. However, right as he was about to click on the next video in the suggestion bar he saw another man, in all black, appear in the background, and once the camera focused in he saw that it was current day Tony. Leaning against the furthest wall with a pair of sleek sun glasses on. He explained how that wasn't really how his story had gone, though he wished it had been and suddenly Bucky felt guilty all over again.

The warm, bright colors on the screen faded away and suddenly Stark was left in a bland, almost empty room. He explained to the students what BARF was and the basics of how it worked before announcing that all of the scholar's projects were going to be fully funded by Stark Industries.

Bucky sat back in his desk chair, watching the man walk off stage, waving to the audience with a large grin across his face that Barnes had never seen in person before. Once the video was over he scrolled down and read the description that just described the Stark internship and some other irrelevant information, but then Bucky saw the date. Not the date for when the video was posted but for when the presentation had been.

Only a day or two before their so called 'Civil War' had taken place.

And after reading that it only took a moment to process that all of Tony's pain, the rage in his reaction when he found out the truth behind his parents death, was just that much more valid. Because it'd hadn't been decades since he'd seen his parents. It had been days. So everything he had went through was still fresh in his mind.

Bucky decided to do some more digging, to learn as much info on Stark as he could because apparently everything that his 'friends' had told him hasn't actually been one hundred percent accurate. He watched about ten more videos, and read a dozen articles, got caught up in blogs. When he asked himself if maybe he was being a bit too much of a stalker he brushed it off, thinking why else would all of this be on the internet if he wasn't supposed to know it?

He read about Howard Stark and then a man named Obadiah Stane and how he had betrayed Stark. How Tony had been captured by the Ten Rings and held hostage in Afghanistan for three months where he acquired his first arc reactor which, according to several articles, kept him alive. There were some pictures of him from 2010 where people pointed out bluish veins that creeped up his neck, just above his collar, but not many explanations for them. Then the New York invasion where Iron Man had heroically drove a nuke into space. When he invited an international terrorist to his home and was blown up for it.

But what really caught Bucky's attention was a handful of articles that reported that Tony Stark had his arc reactor removed in 2013.

So why did he have it now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this chapter is sooo long


	6. Scared

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve confronts Tony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> probably going to be a shorter chapter

_Chapter inspired by[ this ](https://instagram.com/p/BRGQbOKAZVY/)post_

 

After hearing from Bucky about Stark's "therapy" proposition Steve was furious. He burst out of Bucky's room and smashed the request button outside the door over and over until an intern finally arrived, looking slightly frazzled by the insisted buzzing in her earpiece.

"Take me to Stark." He ground out through clenched teeth.

By now he had caught the rest of the team's attention and they were staring quizzically at him.

"I'm sorry, sir, I can't do that. Mr. Stark is currently in a meeting with the secretary of state. However, I can pass along a message if it's-"

" _Take me to Tony goddamn Stark_ , right now." He paused when he realized he was shouting. "Right. Now." He stated now slightly calmer, though an underlying rage threatened to leak through.

The intern swallowed uncomfortably before squeaking a quiet, "Yes, sir" out. Then she began leading a fuming Captain America and silent Bucky Barnes out of the room, the Avenger's watching worriedly as they left.

She brought them through a series of hallways that Steve hadn't yet been able to familiarize himself with yet and when she stopped walking he had no idea where they were. While when they first arrived he had thought the compound hadn't changed at all it seemed so far that they had only kept the outer aesthetic and had remodeled the entire interior. The intern knocked on the door softly, hesitantly, in a way that almost made Steve want to blow open the doors himself because of his impatience.

"Yes?" Asked someone who could only be identified as Ross.

She cracked open the door just a bit so she could speak clearly through it. "Um, sorry to disturb, sir, but I have Mr. Rogers and Mr. Barnes here with me. They say it's incredibly urgent and that they must speak to Mr. Stark as soon as possible." She said, eyes latched to her feet.

"Oh, no don't worry, May. Give us one second and you can send them right in." And that was undoubtedly Tony's voice.

Since he was right outside the door, so close to the man he wanted to wring by the neck, Steve ended up brushing past May just as she was about to close the door and slipping into the room quietly, a stony expression across his face.

Tony and Ross stood a few feet a part at the far end of a conference table, not having noticed him yet since their eyes were down cast and scanning work sheets. Tony was dressed in a sleek, all black, three piece suit and dress shoes while Ross looked to be dressed just a touch more casual. They looked calm, and comfortable. Steve was about to change that.

"Stark. Now." He grit out, his voice gruff with displeasure.

Startled, both men jumped minutely and instinctively took a step back. "Jesus _Christ_ , Rogers! Give me a fuckin' heart attack, why not?" Tony said, clutching his chest where Steve once again noticed a blue glow. No matter how much he wanted to respond with, 'That's what I was trying for', he held back.

"Ross, leave. I just need to speak with Stark here and we'll be out of your hair." He stated.

"We?" The man in question responded.

Bucky came into the room silently, carrying the thick packet Tony had given him the day prior, and passed Steve so that he could stand in the corner to the right with a view of the entire room and all its  exits. It was a habit of his really.

Tony brushed by Ross and gave him a pointed look before saying, "I'll resume this meeting with you tomorrow." Ross opened his mouth to protest, but Stark steamrolled him. "I really don't care it your schedule's full. Clear it." He sat down in a chair a few yards away from Steve and watched the secretary angrily leave the room, shutting the door behind him.

"Now, what can I do for you?" 

Steve itched to get his hands around his throat but settled for grabbing the contract from Bucky and slamming it down onto the table in front of Tony. However, instead of forming an argument to go against Steve he turned to face Bucky who met his eyes fleetingly.

"And you're not going to say anything?" He asked.

Buck sighed and grumbled, "I didn't think he would react this way."

Tony scoffed, "You should know he's _you're_ friend."

Steve blinked and stared at Stark. "You're also my friend."

"No, Rogers, we're really not." He replied, thinking back to their conversation in Siberia.

Steve sighed, not wanting to talk about something like that with Tony right now when there were much more important things to discuss. "I- okay, whatever, sure. Now, what the hell is this contract? You want to open up his head and inspect all his darkest fears?" He asked, temper once again rising.

The engineer tutted and cheekily let out a quiet, 'Language', before sitting up straighter and answering the question. "Your pal Bucky's a bit... Well he has a big case of PTSD lemme tell you, and memory loss, and bordering on violate and mute behaviors. So, with all of  that in mind, I suggested to the court that he start a BARF program. Which is not 'opening up his head'."

Steve looked incredulously at him. "Barf?"

"Binarily Augmented Retro Framing. It's a costly project of mine blah, blah, created to help dissolve PTSD issues blah, blah, will help him regain memories and re-evaluate his past, blah, and it might even be able to take away the effect the trigger words have on him. But you would know all this if you had even read the summary of the packet."

"At least take this seriously!" Steve exclaimed, tired of the man's snarky attitude.

"No! You take this seriously!" Tony said, suddenly out of his seat, a completely change in tone. "If _you_ were taking this seriously you would've read the packet. If you were taking this seriously you would've briefed yourself on Barnes' court required therapy. You would've asked Bucky if he wanted you storming in here or just letting him do what he thought was best for himself. If you were taking this seriously you would've actually read the Accords!" He finished, now fired up.

"So that's what this is all about? You want to get back at me because I disagreed with you on the Accords?!"

Tony almost started ripping his hair out after hearing someone so incredibly ignorant speak. Almost.

"Are you that _fucking_ thick?" He asked lowly, and shot a glance at Barnes who was still watching the exchange quietly, but uncomfortably. "You think this is about some petty revenge? Well Steve I'm sorry but you're going to have to wake the fuck up! The only person here who's _petty_ enough to make up some action movie style revenge is you! And _everything's_ about the accords right now! They were what pardoned you. They are what's trying to help Bucky overcome his triggers. And they are what is keeping us together as a team, because I sure as hell ain't trying to keep you anywhere near me." His tone was steely but Captain America was never one to back down from a fight.

Steve began to reach out his hand, planning on pushing Tony against the wall to intimidate him and take back control of the argument, but before he could even start moving in Stark's direction the man flinched violently and everyone froze.

Suddenly nothing made sense to the Captain anymore. Yeah, he was a big guy- he was a super solider for crying out loud- but he had never know Tony Stark to flinch. Ever.

"Tony.." He asked cautiously. "Are you-.. Are you afraid of me?" It was the only conclusion he could come to. Because even when staring into the face of death herself Stark had never once jumped or flinched or stepped back. There was a lump in his throat now. Yeah, they had never been all that close and they had stupid arguments over stupid things every once in a while but Steve still considered them friends, and it made him sick to think that his teammate would be afraid of him.

"I'm not fucking _scared_ of you, Rogers." Tony spit out his name like it was disgusting. "I'm terrified of you."

And with that, Steve's world crashed down around him. He really had no reason to be upset with Stark or how he felt about him but he was involuntarily. 

"I can yell at you, and use my anger to stand a little taller when I'm in front of you but you're a scary man when it all comes down to it, Cap." Tony knew exactly how his wording was effecting Steve. He knew calling him scary or bully or terrifying would _crush_ him, and he played that to his advantage, not wanting the soldier anywhere near him.

Because he genuinely _was_ afraid.

Iron Man was scared of Captain America, and wasn't that just ironic?

_Because before the Civil War Tony's biggest fear had been losing Steve. But after everything's that's happened it's come to light that Steve's worst fear had been losing someone else._

"You want to know why I'm so afraid of you?" He asked, now more confident since he had the power in the room.

"I bet you've noticed the arc reactor's back, huh?" He began, slowly backing away from Steve until he was far from arms length. "Got it out a few years ago, felt like Heaven, really. Not having a five by five hole cut out of my chest that was pushing on my lungs and heart, was amazing. The docs put in a little metal endoskeleton that replicated the ribs that had been sawed out and it all healed up rather easily since I took a modified version of Extremis which basically created an artificial sternum for me. Good as new." Cap was staring at the ground looking painfully white, not quite knowing where this was going but understanding the point he was making. "However, that didn't last long huh? Seeing as you smashed my father's shield into my chest and caved it all inwards. Now that was nasty."

"Okay, okay we get it, you got hurt, we all did." Bucky said, nodding slightly to his stump.

"Nah, I think I'll finish this story, caught you all staring far too much." He turned back to Rogers. "So, when I got home I learned you had shattered that little metal endoskeleton and it had lodged itself all over my internal organs. Some in my lungs, some in my heart, some in my kidneys. Not the most fun souvenir to return with from a class field trip, but hey, least I knew how to build a miniaturized arc reactor yeah? Good to be back." He knew he was being an asshole and could've kept the details to himself, but if anyone asked- truthfully- Steve had started it.

He lowered his voice when he turned back to the silent man in the room. "Bucky, if you want to talk privately about the contract without your overprotective body guard of a friend around just stop by the work shop whenever, I'm always free." But he shot a look at Steve out of the corner of his eye, "However, tomorrow is the only bad day. I've got a meeting to finish with the secretary of state that someone rudely interrupted."

And suddenly Stark was out the door and Bucky was left with the giant packet, once again contemplating what had just taken place.

He was having some serious deja vu.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I have too much dialogue in this fic...?  
> Thoughts?


	7. Dad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No plot, just fluff

Harley came around the corner and stepped into the workshop as the doors seamlessly opened for him. While Tony had decided against installing Friday throughout the entire compound he could barely function in the lab without her, so here, and in Stark Tower, were the only places she fully existed. Though she helped out with security cameras and lock downs when needed.

"Good morning, Mr. Keener." Chirped Friday, the Irish lilt to her voice making her sound chipper. 

"Mornin', Fri." He responded, weaving his way around the tables, experiments and loose tools. "Is Tony down here...?"

"Not at the moment, sir, however he is just now leaving conference room 450 and will most likely be headed down here. Would you like me to pass on a message?"

"Uh, no, that's fine. I'll meet him in the 400 hall." And with that he set off towards the elevator.

He was able to find Stark easily enough, he was talking with May, one of the interns, and from what Harley could hear he was apologizing. His father's hands were tapping away a quick rhythm against his arc reactor, which was a nervous habit of his. However, other than that nothing else he was doing gave away his anxiousness, but after living with Tony for so long, and basically adopting him as his new dad, Harley had learned the tell tale signs of the man's temper and anxiety.

"I really am sorry for how Roger's yelled at you. I'll be cutting out him and his team's personal assistant buzzers until they learn some manners." He heard Tony say softly. "Why don't you take the rest of the day off, it can't have been easy listening to Captain America yell in your face."

The intern chuckled humorlessly. "Well, it's nothing compared to what you put up with, Mr. Stark. But thank you for caring. I really should be going though, have a nice day."

"You too, May." He called after her retreating form. Once alone Tony let out a long sigh and turned to the hallway where Harley has been hidden, but apparently he was able to know the boy was there regardless of not being able to see him.

"What'd need kid?"

Harley came out from behind the corner and answered with a casual, "Pep's here." Knowing that if he made a big deal out of it than Tony would too.

"Oh." Was all he got in response and a blank look.

"She's waiting for you in the common area."

"Uh huh."

"I can tell her to come back later...?" Harley continued when the other man made no move to say anything more. "Or we could just ignore her and make her come to us...?" He suggested.

Tony's shoulders slumped and with a huff of breath he sat down on the floor in the middle of the intersecting corridors, and then immediately lied down, arms crossed over is eyes. Harley silently walked over to him and plopped down behind Stark's head. He began poking him in the cheeks and nose and forearm until Tony finally grumbled out, "I'm doing what you suggested so _stoop_." 

So, Harley stopped poking him. Instead he started braiding the man's hair. It was short and tangled- most likely from Tony running his hands through it nervously- so it was hard to work with, and he had no hair bands, but that didn't stop him from trying.

"I'm not a princess, Keener. I'm your fake father, you should treat me with respect."

"Says the fully grown man lying in the middle of the hall after some impressive mood swings lately. You're definitely a spoiled princess." Harley replied smugly.

"The prettiest princess." Someone added, and when Harley looked up he noticed Peter in his spider-man suit with baby Nathaniel on his hip held up by his right hand while his other hand was gripping Lila's with Cooper following quietly behind them.

"What's up, Spider-Brat?" Tony mumbled from under his arms, barely sparing the group of kids a glance.

Peter set a gurgling Nathaniel onto Stark's chest who let out a grunt and lead Lila over to Harley before murmuring a grumpy, _"man",_ under his breath.

"We were bored." Was his simple answer. Lila giggled happily as she pulled off all her animal shaped bracelets and began tying the braids Harley had finished into place.

"Well, I just wasted all of my energy yelling at Cyborg and Capsicle so I have nothing to offer you."

Nathaniel leaned over Tony's face, wanting to also play with the man's hair, but his goatee scratched the babies' stomach making him laugh uncontrollably, flopping onto the floor beside Stark's head. Peter scooped the child up before asking, "What'd they do now?"

"Nothing really, just yelled at an intern and then yelled at me, so I yelled back."

"Did you win?" Lila asked curiously, hands now basically stuck in Tony's hair, tangled into it by all the rubber bands.

"Hell yeah I did."

"Well this just looks unprofessional." Stated a new voice; Pepper. "Harley, I thought I told you to fetch Tony and bring him to me." But Harley only shrugged nonchalantly. "Tony what happened to Ross? I thought I was going to be apart of the meeting where we discuss his use of the Raft?"

"I told him leave when Bonnie and Clyde showed up."

"Rogers and Barnes?" She questioned, getting a nod in response. "And he actually just left? No argument?" Pepper asked incredulously.

"I mean, I could had _him_ locked up for all the Accords' rules he broke, of course he wouldn't go against me, especially not right now."

"Mm hmm."

They sat in a comfortable silence for a few moments. Pepper just watching how the children acted around Stark and noting it would be a good idea to involve them in some form of press conference so Tony Stark would seem more humanized. He definitely needed some good press.

Suddenly Nathaniel started wailing so Peter plopped the boy back down onto Tony's chest where he immediately silenced himself and started grabbing at the man's facial hair.

"Wait. No, that just doesn't make sense?" Pepper said, confused. "You- why would he stop crying with you? I've only ever see kids cry with you."

Tony just shrugged, similar to how Harley had, while slightly jostling the baby on his chest who cooed and gurgled happily some more.

"It just happens." He said tiredly and began quietly dozing off in the middle of the hallway, surrounded by his family, with Pepper Potts looking down at him bewildered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was too lazy to grammar check this one too


End file.
